be brave [optional pack hunt]

Hi everyone I'll be hosting our pack hunt with permission. This is backdated just a few days because Star may or may not become a captive in another pack... @Scimitar @Kaskara @Falwasi @Galileo @Dovev @Kieran @Paarthurnax @Nefarious @Saber @Esperanza @Estoc @Kaede @Luka i'm gonna go ahead and say no posting order. Please try to keep posting fast- I will probably start the next round after about a week. Dice roll will come later! The first round should probably be arrival.

Star had been given the responsibility of hosting the pack hunt. Since then she'd been noting every time she scented elk scents in the Valley, keeping in mind which way they were traveling. She had chosen today for not many reasons- just a few. The elk were nearby, just over in Wapun Meadow, and there wasn't any terrible weather that affected them. It was cold but the sun was bright. She stood next to the creek. She would gather them here, but they would head over to Wapun Meadow after they were all here, or at least most of them. Lifting her snout to the sky, she let out a long, loud howl. It held joy but sadness was laced in- they had lost many hunts, but there was a hope that maybe after this one the caches would be full as well as their stomachs. Then she nervously thought- what if I mess up the hunt? It was her first time hosting one and she was nervous that the new members would make fun of her small size and looks. She did her best to stand with authority, to look in charge as the wolves arrived.

A howl shattered the silence of the day, and it was one he had not recognized, but the intentions were clear. Food. Hunt. Here. Now. Without a delay in his mind, Saber had no excuse for not appearing. So with a shake from head to paw, the handsome FrostFur left his den, the tawny sand, ash, and cream pelt a striking comparison to the deep and dark color of the trees that resided in the forest he traveled through to reach his den.

The time lapse between the call and the travel was short, for he had no issues with running. Damn near a track star. His physique was composed of not just athletic purposes, but fighting as well, and underneath the soft and supple pelt, his tendons and pistons networking adrenaline made him crave to do more than just a light sprint. But isn't it great a hunt would be scheduled now?

Appearing in the fringes of the Meadow, Saber was first to appear. Without much scanning, his glacial water eyes found a heap of white fluff next to a Creek and he desire at first simply to know what or who it was. Taking regal steps, he commenced.

"Hello, fellow Creek member."

Sincerely hoping he was addressing a wolf and not a fallen cloud, he analyzed his company.

The wind whipped about the meadow, stirring the bare trees and the fading green needles of the pines. It was a cloudy, dusky gray day, the land coated in sparse snow and dead things. Dovev ignored most of it, his body moving at a jaunty trot, with legs swinging casually below his knees.

There had been talk of the Creek's unsuccessful hunting. It was a growing issue, for the pack had exploded in population and that meant a correlation in food needed to keep the pack running and happy. Dovev had ran alongside Star to bring down an elk a couple weeks ago- but that didn't last long. Complemented with other factors, the wolves who fed on the carcass found it diminished and picked thorough by the end of the week. Now ravens were circling above the tundra beast who rambled through the valley, eagerly watching as the wolf stopped to observe the two figures in the distance.

He had heard the howl long before Dovev decided to follow the small female, her call speaking of the hardships the pack could surely face. He undoubtedly agreed; their pack must be kept running with a steady supply of meat. Especially if Scimitar kept Paarthurnax around. Slowing his pace, Dovev approached, at first staring at the rusty beige male standing near Star. Rather than say anything, the tundra beast only announced himself with a soft chuff and turned to keep his nose balanced in the wind.

Kieran heard the howl on the wind and with one last sniff of the ground. He stretched his long legs and ran towards it. He would be glad to offer his prowess to hunt for the pack that he now called family. He wasn't close to any of them other than the female Kaskara, but it didn't matter he would still do his best to provide for them all.

He stopped gently falling to a soft jog and chuffed at those who were there and tilted his head. Now he simply waited for the first orders.

Kaede had been keeping to himself for the most part, but when a hunt summons was sent up, he approached without hesitation. Some were already gathered by the time he arrived, and he stuck to the back, assessing them one by one with a brief glance. He was by no means likely the fastest or largest here, but his support would be welcome he assumed anyway. He did not know yet who had sent the call for leading, but he knew he would find out soon enough. Until then he kept quiet, waiting patiently for instructions. There were a good many here he did not know, his fault for taking his time but he was in no rush. He had an entire winter to get acquainted.

Star’s call echoed across the creek, and with a gentle chuff, the male lifted himself, shaking off the sparse bits of snow that had fallen upon his pelt. His eyes were heavy with the lull of sleep, and a yawn emitted from his muzzle as his long limbs strode in the direction of her beckoning.

Others had arrived before him, and the regal offered a nod to each as he came in. He did not move forward to sit beside the petite she-wolf – as far as he was concerned, this was her show to run, and he would not draw authority upon himself. Instead, his gleaming eyes met her features with gentle encouragement, and while awaiting for others to arrive, the Frostfur male rolled his shoulders back in a stretch, awakening his muscles for what was to come. A feast was exactly what they needed – too many failed hunts had been occurring, and he felt apprehensive that the winter would only further the pain in their empty stomachs.

thank yall for joining! @Saber @Kaede @Kieran @Scimitar @Dovev round 2- explanation and journey round 3- the hunt round 4- if hunt success, a feast. If hunt a failure, farewell time. Please don't do any actual hunting yet.

As the wolves begun to arrive she climbed upon a flat stone next to the Creek. It was not that tall, but at least it made her feel taller. "Hello," she greeted the first one to arrive. She didn't know him, but he smelled like the Creek, so he was welcome. A few others arrived. She recognized Dovev, Kieran and Scimitar. She acknowledged them all with a polite little dip of her head. The fact that the alpha himself that shown up encouraged her a bit. She waited about a minute. When no one else arrived, she begun. "Hello there Creek wolves. Some of you may not know me- I am the Eta, Star. As you know our hunts have been going very poorly in one of our most desperate times- Winter. Our ranks have grown a bit recently and to support us all we will need food." She paused a moment before continuing. "Today we will hunt elk. I have been tracking a herd that now resides to the east edge of Wapun Meadow. Here is the plan:" Although Star was a great hunter, she didn't have a broad range of plan ideas, so she pretty much went with what she and Dovev had done. "The fast, graceful, or stealthy will rush out first on my signal, a lash of my tail. Oh, we'll be behind some cover, there's lots of tall grass over there. These wolves will herd the target away from the rest of the herd. They will also attempt to trip it up or make it fall. The stronger wolves with more all out force will make most of the actual attacks. The fast wolves will slow it down so the strong wolves can pick it off. On our way there I want you to decide in your mind what you should be doing- are you faster or stronger?" She let out a sigh, she had talked a lot. "Follow me, let's go." She said quietly. She hopped down from the stone onto the ground. Then she started her way eastward towards the Meadow. She hoped that they would be successful. After a few minutes at a slow jog, the scent became pretty fresh. They were very near. She was careful to still her tail for no false signals. In moments she would burst out from the grass as one of the fast members.

ooo this is such a long post for me! You don't have to match length

Kaede looked about, assessing each wolf as the plan was laid out. He was surprised that Star did not divide them herself. Each wolf should know their own strengths, true, but hopefully the groups would end evenly. He knew that he obviously belonged in the speed group, neither strength nor stamina being traits in his arsenal.

They would need to work well, he saw immediately, for this plan to be a success. If the faster group could not slow the prey down enough then the kill group would be left in the dust. They couldn't afford to lose this food, so he would need to be on his a game.

Kieran listened but didn't say anything he was both fast and strong, but strong was probably what would win out. He had the weight behind him to bear down the animals that they chased. He simply followed behind their huntress of the moment and kept a weather eye out and his nose to the ground.

I'm the suck.

Scimitar settled easily in to the role of silence—it was a nice change of pace to be the one to follow the orders, if for a stolen moment, and while he would not relinquish his title so easily, it also did not mean that he could be laid back. He was slightly surprised when the fluffy she-wolf did not divide them in to the teams she spoke of – but he made no mention of this. He did not consider himself skilled with agility, and so he would place himself on the team of strength.

Instead, the cinnamon wolf trailed after the group, his mind drifting to those in attendance – curious to what they would pick. It released insight to his comrades and what they felt they were capable of, and he could only hope that the group would move together in a well bonded unit.

Star lead them from pack borders, and at their destination, the Frostfur would stay behind, waiting for the first group to unleash themselves in to the plan that had been set before them – one that he might have given in different direction to ensure the beast they chose was encircled prior to a chase.. but this was not his rodeo, and he held Star in a high regard.

Saber watched at the tiny and fluffy cloud-like hellion gave the orders of how the hunt would commence, and knowing honed both strength and speed, Saber decided to place himself in the group of speed. Speed was more essential, the very part of the hunt that the strength sect would rely on.

Trotting on the far other side of the group, Saber awaited to see who would join him. Who else had proved that they too, could assist in the major section of downing a massive beast? Saber knew he could hold his own, but who else had the speed to keep up?

roll here. Success! @Scimitar if anything is wrong with how I rolled please pm me. @Kaede @Saber @Kieran @Dovev feel free to power-play Star a bit in your posts as needed.

Star did not think too much through it- she was very basic on making plans. Her own plan was in several ways flawed. She hadn't wanted to sort them out because she thought she might accidentally put them on the wrong team, not knowing what their skills were. Star had placed herself in her own head on the speed team. She was a warrior to be, yes, but she was faster than she was strong. Her tiny weight could easily be thrown off if she tried to latch onto an elk. Star's eyes only peeked out from behind the grass, through holes in the wall of grass. She watched the elk in a small clearing closely. A small herd. Her eyes danced over them, trying to spot which would be the weakest or easiest. Her eyes latched onto a small doe who had a particular limp. She and another doe walked through the clearing slowly, but not so slow that Star didn't notice her limp. She glanced at her pack-mates to make sure they were alert and ready. Silently Star flicked her puffy tail. She raced out towards the limp doe. She had no time to check if her fellow Creek wolves were following. The elk herd noticed her immediately, nervously making whatever sounds elk make as they began to flee. The herd seemed to move as a whole, almost. But the stronger, faster, healthier, younger bucks sped towards the front, while the weaker, slower, sicker, older ones fell back. And this doe happened to be one of the weaker slower ones cause of her limp. She fell behind from the better ones, although she did not detach from the group. Star was right on their tail, incredible speed in action. Making her move, the little white wolf leapt and nipped at it's back ankles before falling back to trail behind the herd.

Kieran's green eyes zeroed in on the doe with the limp and star's racing form. He shifted and with a burst of speed sped up to herd the limping female away. He came up beside her right side and snapped at her neck and side to push her back towards his packmates. One of the others could make the kill he'd just herd for now.

Just to note, Dovev and Kaede are no longer in game. Starrlight gave me permission to PP Kaede in the hunt, though.

They found elk -- the beasts were impressive as they stamped, and while Scimitar kept close watch on them and studied potential prey, he maintained his silence, allowing Star to make the final decision. This was her hunt, and she was doing just fine.

Her selection was impressive in itself, and completely within the realm of realism. The injured female could not keep up, and as two of his pack mates managed to herd her, Scimitar managed to come to the side, a guttural growl escaping him as his jaws aimed to attack the flesh of it's side, hoping to weaken it and slow it further. His target was met, and blood filtered his senses. He let go though, knowing it was not enough, and as his paws continued to thrum the ground, his jaws this time would seek for the flesh of his prey's flank, hoping to grasp something with more substance to truly pull back on the beast and avoid any flying hooves.

His eyes flashed upon a blur -- Kaede had leapt forward on the opposite side of the beast, his own jaws seemingly aiming to make a grasp at the elk to help take it down.

Saber had no other option but to put himself in the ave of fire, but he chose this. Suited his way, his chosen path in the hunt. The handsome soft toned male increased his gait, matching the strides of the weakened doe, and only after giving the wolf known as Kieran an encouraging and tail tip touch, did he put forth an extra burst of acceleration, and begin chomping at the front hoof of the battered female.

It took massive concentration to avoid the doe's attempts to bash him with her skull, the high kicks she attempted to accomplish, but she was worried of the other lupines on her surrounding sides. If she were to stop and face them, she would be dead. However, if she kept using her all to persevere, she would wear herself to exhaustion.
She was caught in a double edged sword, and she knew it.

Panicked grunts and guttural sounds left her own jaws, her chest heaving in effort of her lungs, the organs trying their hardest to supply the broad with the oxygen that her bloodstream was running thin on, the element her tiring and buzzed brain could only receive so much of at a time.
Her time was nigh, and she knew.
Every prey creature knew.
Only a matter of time, before a lupine struck the blow that would end all of the world she had ever come to know.
Only a matter of time before the kiss of death would be upon her, and her world would fade to black.

alright, gonna go ahead and kill it off. Y'all can choose if your wolf also made some final attacks, leaving it vague what they were doing at this time. @Scimitar @Kieran @Saber

Star was filled with pride and a sense of belonging as her packmates followed right on her tail.(ba-dum-tss) The snowball-like lupine continued to herd the injured doe, which was just getting worse and worse. Star leaped up and bit onto it's side, hanging on for a few moments before she fell off. She hopped up as soon as possible. It took a few moments, but she caught back up the few yards if the chase she had lost when she had fallen. It was now bleeding from a fair wound on it's side. Time to go for the weak spot. Her midnight eyes targeted the injured leg. She leapt mightily, her jaws wrapping around it's leg. She was pretty much being dragged along, and fast, which hurt. But her snow white fangs dug in deeper to the doe's delicate flesh every second of the hunt. A little of blood splashed upon her muzzle, staining it with a few droplets of cherry red that could be washed off later. She let go at just the right time, making sure it was the right moment. At a point she could recover from the fall and continue quickly. She was soon back at it's heels, nipping sharply at it's ankles as it kept trying to flee. At this point they had fallen quite a ways behind the herd, even though the chase was fast and the adrenaline was pumping through their veins. Star glanced over at her teammates, who seemed to be doing well also. She was ready. The snow white wolf leapt for the neck. Being a short wolf, it was hard to reach. She had to put a lot of power in her hind legs to even hope to make it up. Her fangs latched onto the shoulder. While the elk frantically pushed itself onward, Star quickly swung herself around to the front while hanging onto the elk's neck. Her shining fangs that had once been the reason for her last name but down into the flesh. She viciously tore at it's throat, blood spurting from it's neck. The elk's eyes were wild with fear. Star made eye contact with the elk before savagely tearing into it's throat again. Blood sprayed onto her muzzle as she pulled whatever part of the throat her teeth dug into forward, towards her. It's dark eyes seemed to lose something at that moment. After a few more seconds, it fell to the ground with a final thump. Star let go of her hold on the elk's neck, stepping off the body. "I think we're done." She said quietly, looking at the elk's bloody throat. Despite her quiet emotionless voice, she was welling up with excitement of their success inside.

ooo lookie at my long post! I think this is the longest I've ever made.

Keiran stayed near to jump if he was needed, but mostly he just held to the side and herded the creature towards star. This was her hunt so it was her kill and he was okay with this. He snarled and snapped and growled pushing the creature further towards her, it's eyes wild with fear and hopelessness.

With jaws tearing at the beast from angles everywhere, it was only a matter of time -- his own muzzle was stained with crimson, and as Star took the last leap towards the beasts' throat, his own teeth would make to grab at its side with more force, hoping to hinder a swinging attack to his smaller (but feisty) but pack mate.

The elk fell -- and with his own sides heaving in a pant from the energy used, his eyes gleamed as they cast over his pack mates, assuring himself no harm had come to any of them in the blur of the attack. Everyone seemed fine, and releasing the air he had held while inspecting this, he gave a nod to the petite Star. "Job well done," he murmured, his muzzle bending down to scoop some blood-stained snow in his jaws to chew on. From here, he would let her decide what to do with the carcass -- as her superior, he could entirely force himself as the first to feast on the meal.. instead, he was far more worried about making sure the pregnant she-wolf, Paarthurnax, gained a fair share to help fuel her own energy.

i'm sick of still having this thread. If you aren't okay with this or whatever, just tell me. Last post for Star-

Star nodded when Scimitar said job well done. "We all did great." She congratulated the group with a plastered on smile- she was happy, but a show of emotion was forced. "I think we should take this to a cache." She said, glancing up at Scimitar to make sure her decision was okay. If they agreed, she would help them to drag the body to the nearest cache. She was proud she had been given the opportunity to host this, and thankful that it was successful. Star glanced at each of her teammates who had worked to catch this. They had won over the prey, even in cold times.

Last post here.

With a nod of agreement, the cinnamon wolf quietly bent down, his jaws snapping at a piece of flesh to grab hold of and begin to pull. There was enough of them that he felt that could pull the carcass home -- though it was unfortunate it was further away from their homelands. Still, the pack would need the food, and he would not see them go without or leave the remains here for a scavenger to pick at.

It was slow moving, but would be well worth it once they brought their prize home. Their pregnant resident would be well fed -- and perhaps it would even ease Falwasi's disheartened state at the lack of food they had for a few weeks now.

this will conclude my post/explanation for absence

The band struck out behind Star, their tails and banners jauntily waving in the air as symbols of excitement. However, when it came to encircling the herd as per Star's orders, the elk began to run in a confusing, disordered, feverish clump. Losing sight of the others, Dovev sprang forward and chased after the herd, locking his sights on a target different than what the other hunters had picked. Barreling across the landscape, Dovev began to pursue an elk cow, running for several miles.

However, Dovev was not built for speed, and began to slow as the elk trotted ahead in the brush. He glanced over his shoulder to see if there were more pack mates to take up the chase, but to his surprise, the plains behind him were empty. Stopping, the wolf looked back at the elk, who had halted also and was eying him contemplatively. Like a moron, Dovev had chased the wrong cow and was no use to the hunters, who were likely pouncing on the perfect meal right now. Turning, he trouped back to the original spot.
Scenting the rich aroma of blood, the wolf was able to track down their kill. Scimitar, Star, Saber, and the others were gathered around the lifeless form of an elk and tearing it up to cache. Sulkily, Dovev imitated them and helped tear up the fresh meat to bring back.

Kieran bent his back to the task. Happy to help where he could. He would help drag the beast back. If they all pitched in it may not take as long as they feared. They had done well and their family would eat well. He tilted his head trying to find the best spot. Grasping tight to one of the limbs, close to the hip. He dug his teeth in, ready to go. He didn't want to rip the limb off, which is why he stayed so close to the inside.